The Road from Scientist to Founder: A Partnership for Accelerated Success
The Challenges of Turning Research into Reality
The journey from scientist to founder is well-trodden, but that doesn’t mean it’s easy. In fact, there are many pitfalls along the way that can hinder a researcher’s progress in commercializing their ideas. Over the past decade, several programs have emerged to help smooth the path for technical founders. However, two prominent programs, Activate and The Engine Accelerator, have now decided to join forces to give founders an even bigger advantage.
"We felt like the closer we could get, the more work we could do together, the more we can feed into each other’s programs, and ultimately, see more throughput from these proto-founders to entrepreneurs," Emily Knight, CEO of The Engine Accelerator, told TechCrunch. This partnership is an attempt to help technical founders overcome the challenges they face in turning their research into reality.
The Complementary Nature of Activate and The Engine
The two programs are complementary in many ways. The Engine works with scientists and engineers who are just beginning to explore commercializing their research, hence their status as ‘proto-founders.’ Activate, on the other hand, steps in when founders have refined their ideas further and offers them two-year fellowships to get them ready for fundraising.
A significant number of the proto-founders who completed the recent Blueprint program run by The Engine ended up being awarded an Activate fellowship. "It’s not a universal truth, but what we see is that Blueprint participants are better prepared for Activate," Cyrus Wadia, CEO of Activate, told TechCrunch. "My team was kind of like, can we get more of that?"
The Partnership in Its Earliest Phases
The partnership remains in its earliest phases. No money has changed hands, and it’s not at the point where the two are considering merging. "It’s too early to talk about that," Knight said.
For now, they are looking to trade notes on their curricula to see where they can fill in gaps. They’ll maintain separate application and admissions flows for the time being, though it’s possible something like the college ‘common app’ might develop for founders who might find both programs useful.
A Shared Goal: Accelerating Technical Founders
Ultimately, both Knight and Wadia said that the alliance is an attempt to get more technical founders up and running quickly. "We’ve normalized a pace that’s too slow, especially when you’re talking about climate," Wadia said. "If we have a shot to move a scientist quicker down this pathway to further success, then that’s well worth the time and investment to do that."
The Need for Acceleration
The acceleration of technical founders is crucial in today’s fast-paced business environment. With the climate crisis at the forefront of everyone’s minds, researchers need help turning their ideas into reality quickly.
According to Wadia, "we’ve normalized a pace that’s too slow." This means that it takes too long for scientists and engineers to commercialize their research. However, with this partnership, both Activate and The Engine hope to change this narrative.
The Benefits of Collaboration
By collaborating, the two programs can leverage each other’s strengths and weaknesses. For example, The Engine can provide early-stage support to proto-founders, while Activate can offer more advanced training and resources to help them prepare for fundraising.
This partnership is an attempt to bridge the gap between research and commercialization. By working together, Activate and The Engine hope to create a smoother path for technical founders and ultimately accelerate their progress in turning their ideas into reality.
A New Era for Technical Founders
The partnership between Activate and The Engine Accelerator marks a new era for technical founders. With this collaboration, researchers will have access to more resources and support than ever before.
As Wadia noted, "if we have a shot to move a scientist quicker down this pathway to further success, then that’s well worth the time and investment to do that." This partnership is an attempt to make that happen.
The Future of Acceleration
In the future, this partnership could lead to more innovation and entrepreneurship. By accelerating technical founders, both Activate and The Engine hope to create a ripple effect that will have far-reaching consequences for society as a whole.
This collaboration is just the beginning. As Knight noted, "we’ll maintain separate application and admissions flows for the time being." However, this could change in the future, and something like the college ‘common app’ might develop for founders who find both programs useful.
Conclusion
The partnership between Activate and The Engine Accelerator is a significant step forward in helping technical founders overcome the challenges they face. By collaborating, both programs can leverage each other’s strengths and weaknesses to create a smoother path for researchers.
This partnership marks a new era for technical founders. With more resources and support available than ever before, researchers will have access to everything they need to turn their ideas into reality quickly.
As Wadia noted, "if we have a shot to move a scientist quicker down this pathway to further success, then that’s well worth the time and investment to do that." This partnership is an attempt to make that happen.
